Kentucky football and Ole Miss produced another close game on Saturday, but the Cats simply didn’t execute at a high enough level to come out victorious. There were some bright spots in the 30-23 loss, but the underlying theme of this one was frustration and head-scratching decisions.
Here’s what you need to know from the Cats’ first loss of the season
1. This game mattered.
I’ll be honest, I never envisioned Kentucky and Ole Miss cooking up the rivalry that they have over the past several seasons. The Wildcats and the Rebels
are making it an annual tradition to open SEC play with a heated battle. In their last three meetings prior to Saturday’s matchup, a mere seven-point scoring differential separated the two teams, with Ole Miss winning two of three.
There is no denying that the Ole Miss fan base has been less than thrilled with their program struggling to beat Kentucky. Especially considering the Rebels’ recent SEC success under Coach Kiffin. Mark Stoops vs. Lane Kiffin continues to deliver close games littered with big emotion on both sides of the ball.
Unfortunately, Kentucky didn’t play at a high enough level to treat the fans inside Kroger Field to a big-time win in the 2025 SEC opener.
2. Ty Bryant is special.
The Lexington native showed out today at Kroger Field in Kentucky’s SEC opener. Bryant’s back-to-back first-quarter interceptions were an impressive reminder of how special #14 can be. Those two big-time plays resulted in ten points and were a major reason UK was in a solid position early in the game. Bryant has played in every game since arriving on campus as a freshman, totaling over 40 tackles in his first two seasons as a Wildcat.
Brad White’s defense is typically the catalyst when the Cats are playing their best football. Guys like Ty Bryant continuing to step up could make all the difference as Kentucky aims to navigate the toughest football conference in America while combating a struggling offense.
3. UK’s two-headed running-back monster approach is working.
Through the first two games of the season, one bright spot for UK has been their consistent approach to the running game. The two running-back approach with Seth McGowan and Dante Dowdell has proven to be difficult for defenses to handle over the course of four quarters.
The buzz phrase of 2025 has been that McGowan “runs like he’s mad at the ground,” which is an unusual but accurate way to summarize his running style. McGowan flexed his skillset this afternoon and put the SEC on notice. He and Dowdell nearly split the workload right down the middle today at Kroger Field. McGowan would rush 15 times for 93 yards and Dowdell added 56 yards on 14 carries.
4. Zach Calzada and the offense continue to sputter. Cutter Boley sees his first action of 2025.
The seventh-year QB was a disappointing 8/16 for 68 yards in the first half. Poor stats aside, Calzada just hasn’t passed the eye test in terms of what you’re looking for in an SEC. There is a noticeable lack of continuity within the Kentucky offense unit.
In an unfortunate moment, the ABC camera crew caught Nick Calzada saying “What the F*** are we doing?,” just before Mark Stoops and the Cats blew their final timeout of the first half with ample time remaining in the second quarter. In fact, UK somehow managed to burn all three of its first-half timeouts due to desperate confusion. It was later reported that they were experiencing headset communication issues, but the public relations damage had already been done.
Halfway through the third quarter, the football Gods finally shone on Calzada and the Wildcat offense after he connected with Ja’Mori Maclin on a 44-yard bomb that set up Seth McGowan’s second touchdown of the afternoon.
Calzada would leave the game with a shoulder injury with around 6 minutes left in the game, opening the door for Cutter Boley to see his first action of the season. The staff let Boley immediately air it out, but he was unable to get anything going in his first series of action. He’d settle in on drive number two and finished the game 1/3 for 38 yards and rushed four times, accumulating 14 yards. Calzada’s final stats were 15/30 for 149 yards and no touchdowns.
Now we’ll wait on the status of Calzada’s injury, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where Cutter Boley doesn’t get some time under center next week against Eastern Michigan.
5. Kentucky football still isn’t passing the eye test.
Penalties, confusion, and lack of execution have been common themes through UK’s first eight quarters of football. Burning all three first-half timeouts at inopportune moments was a painful illustration of the self-inflicted errors that continue to plague Mark Stoops’ football team. UK would finish the day with afternoon logging six penalties for 50 yards. There is also a consistent culture of poor situational football that is continually making things difficult for the Cats. Saturday provided many head-scratching moments in terms of play-calling. Bottom line – winning in the SEC takes flawless execution, and right now this Kentucky football program isn’t living up to that standard.
Now, let’s vent.
